いる / ある — Verbs of Existence
Japanese uses two different verbs for 'to exist / there is,' chosen by whether the subject is animate (living, self-moving) or inanimate. いる is for animate things (people, animals); ある is for inanimate things (objects, plants).
Structure
[Animate Noun] が いる | [Inanimate Noun] が ある
Examples
宇宙人がいる！
Uchuujin ga iru!
Aliens exist!
宇宙人 (aliens — living beings) + が + いる (animate existence)
時間がない。
Jikan ga nai.
I have no time.
時間 (time — inanimate) takes ある; its plain negative is irregular → ない
庭に犬がいる。
Niwa ni inu ga iru.
There is a dog in the garden.
犬 (dog — animate) + が + いる; an inanimate thing like a ball would take ある
• Vehicles: Cars and planes move, but have no will of their own → treated as objects (車がある). • Plants: Trees are alive but don't move on their own → objects (木がある). • The 'living being' rule is about self-directed movement/will, not literally being alive.
Commonly confused with
The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones いる is tested against.
vs あります／います (polite) vs ある／いる (plain)
Same meaning; あります/います are the polite forms used in ます-style speech, while ある/いる are plain/casual.
vs ある (existence) vs 持っている (possession)
お金がある = money exists / I have money (general). お金を持っている = I am carrying/holding money right now (physical possession on hand).
More existence
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